Technical Information

 Scope of Supply

 Technical Data

 Infocenter

Blair Multi-Rope Double-Drum Winder

for South Deep Gold Mines
(South Africa)

www.siemag-mtec.com
Blair Multi-Rope Double-Drum Winder
By order of Placer Dome/Western Areas Joint Venture,
SIEMAG M-TEC2 built a large Blair multi-rope double-
drum winder for production at South Deep Gold Mines
(Westonaria/South Africa). (Since December 2006
this mine is owned by Gold Fields, Johannesburg/
South Africa.) With a space requirement of 33 meters
in length, a width of 11 meters and a total machine
weight of about 1,050 tons (incl. motor, without foun-
dation), this machine is likely to be the largest winder
in the world.
The machine operates as a production winder for the rock
hoisting shaft of the South Deep Gold Mines. The shaft has
a depth of 3,000 metres, resulting in the machine carrying
a total of 4 x 3,350 metres of rope. The supply of instal-
lations and machinery for shafts of this depth has been
made possible by the new guideline SANS 10294, which
requires special measures to be taken to allow hoisting
from such depths. Now increased attention is paid to
compliance with admissible and common dynamic loads
applied on the ropes, while at the same time higher static
load is allowed.
In order to minimize the stress on the ropes, a large winder
drum diameter of 7.1 m was selected for achieving a rope
pressure below 3 MPa. Each of the two skips in the shaft
is suspended on two ropes, which are coiled up on sepa-
rate drum compartments. Due to the length of each drum
and the maximum allowable obliquity of the ropes, the
two double-rope drums have been arranged at an angle of
4.5° to one another, thus necessitating the installation of a
Hooke’s joint (cardan) between the two drums. The driving
power of almost 13,000 kW is supplied by two directly cou-
pled AC motors, which are located at the free ends of the
machine in an overhung configuration. Owing to the use of
a Hooke’s joint, the motor torque required is reduced as
a result of the compensating torque of the second drum.
Hooke‘s Joint
This system differs from an „electrically coupled Blair
winder“ which, from a mechanical point of view, consists of
two completely separate machines.
Each of the drums is fitted with a clutch, thus assuring the
positioning of the two skips independently in the shaft, at
any time and in any position.
A total of 32 brake calipers of the new SIEMAG M-TEC2
type BE 200 act on the two brake discs of each drum.
They exert a force of 12,800 kN which brings the machine
safely to a halt under any normal load condition. The brake
system has the 4-channel closed-loop design, where each
channel acts on both drums. Therefore, in the clutching
mode too, all the channels are available. With the safety
brake, the braking force is controlled in such a way that
the machine comes to a standstill with a set retardation.
Even in the event of an entire brake-circuit failure, this
design ensures that the machine is stopped in a control-
led way. At all times, gentle acceleration transitions (“jerk
limitation”) are provided which are important for limiting
the dynamic stress value on the ropes.
The machine was essentially manufactured in South Africa,
while the design and major components, such as the main
shafts, the Hooke’s joint, and in particular the entire brake
system were supplied from Germany.
In this project, SIEMAG M-TEC2 has, for the first time, exe-
cuted a contract for a Blair multi-rope double-drum winder
for the South African market. Constructing this exceptional
machine was a special challenge, which SIEMAG M-TEC2
was successfully able to meet thanks to its experience with
Blair winders previously installed in Europe and Asia.
Three-Parted Clutch
General
Overview

4-Channel Hydraulic Brake Control System

Brake Post with BE 200

Technical Data (Metric Dimensions)
Type of Hoisting Production

Hoisting Capacity 255,000 t/month

Conveyances 2 Skips in balance

Hoisting Distance 3,000 m

Payload 31 t

Hoisting Speed 18 m/s

Type of Winder DDBW / 7100 / D (Blair Multi-Rope Double-Drum)

Drum Diameter 7.1 m

Coiling Width 1.9 m

Number of Rope Layers 4

Load per Compartment 1,050 kN

Number of Ropes/Conveyance 2

Rope Diameter 49 mm

Rope Mass 10.18 kg/m

Rope Breaking Load 1,878 kN

Type of Brake Disc Brakes, 2 Discs per Drum

Number of Brake Posts 8 in total

Number and Type of Brake Calipers 32 Pairs BE 200

Type of Brake Control 4 Independent Channels

Type of Emergency Braking Fully Closed-Loop Controlled Brake

Infocenter
Headquarters: Subsidiaries:

Germany USA China (under registration)

SIEMAG M-TEC GmbH

2
Obere Industriestraße 8
57250 Netphen · Germany
Phone +49 (0) 2738 3121 0
E-Mail info@siemag-mtec.de
Plant operation:
Switzerland
SIEMAG M-TEC Inc.
2
SIEMAG M-TEC2 Beijing Representative Office
2969 South Chase Avenue Room 19-A, Block A, CITIC International Building
Milwaukee, WI 53207 · USA 19 Jianguomenwai Daije
Phone +1 414 727 - 5725 Beijing 100004 · China
E-Mail ken@siemag-mtec.us Phone + 86 10 8526 1713
E-Mail chu@siemag-mtec.cn
South Africa
SIEMAG M-TEC2 (Pty) Ltd.
P.O. Box 2964
TI 5 / E

Edenvale 1610 · South Africa

SIEMAG M-TEC2 GmbH Phone +27 11 383 - 9300
7188 Sedrun · Switzerland E-Mail bennied@siemag-mtec.co.za
Phone +41 819365280
E-Mail aheller@siemag-mtec.com

www.siemag-mtec.com